Thom residence, Waitati (top). Otago University Union redevelopment.
### ODT Online Sat, 24 Nov 2012
Awards reflect straitened times
By Nigel Benson
Innovation in a difficult economic climate was a feature of winning designs in the 2012 Southern Architecture Awards, announced at Forsyth Barr Stadium last night. Awards were presented for seven Otago projects, ranging from public changing rooms to houses and a hotel. The design of the winning projects reflected the challenging economic conditions in New Zealand, awards convener and Dunedin architect Niko Young said last night. “Even though times are tough, client expectations remain high. This has resulted in innovative architecture produced to lean budgets,” he said. “Architects and clients doing more with less is a theme of the 2012 Southern Architecture Awards. Such an approach often involves the reworking of existing buildings.”
The judging panel comprised Mr Young, University of Otago design for technology department fellow Michael Findlay, Dunedin architect Regan Hall and Auckland architect Nicola Herbst.
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██ NZIA 2012 Southern Architecture Awards – winners information, citations and more photos at NZIA website
New Zealand Institute of Architects NZIA)
The New Zealand Institute of Architects represents over 90 percent of registered architects in New Zealand, promoting and celebrating the role of architecture in enhancing the built environment.
● Is my Architect a member of NZIA? (directory search)
● Find an NZIA Practice www.architecturenz.net
New Zealand Registered Architects Board (NZRAB)
– registers architects who have been assessed by their peers as competent
– confirms every five years that architects continue to be competent
– maintains an online New Zealand Architects Register
– investigates complaints and, if need be, disciplines architects.
NZRAB: Is my building designer a Registered Architect?
● The New Zealand Architects Register
● Find an Architect
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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr
### nzherald.co.nz Friday 23 November 2012
Buyers urged to challenge ‘architect home’ tag
By Matthew Backhouse
Home buyers need to challenge estate agents who claim houses are architecturally designed after an”outrageous” ruling that relaxes how properties can be marketed, the architects’ body say. The Real Estate Agents Authority’s disciplinary tribunal has given agents the all-clear to describe houses as being designed by an architect, even if the plans were drafted by someone unregistered with the Registered Architects Board. It said the test was whether the designer had the necessary knowledge and skills to carry out the work.
The decision sets a precedent at odds with more than two dozen of the authority’s previous rulings, which have stopped agents from falsely advertising homes as architect-designed in order to push up sale prices. But the tribunal also cautioned real estate agents against such misrepresentation.
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